Why Advertise Online?
Statistics provided by the National Association of Realtor reveal the power of the internet in acquiring clients and driving sales. Consider these statistics:
- The internet was the top information source used in a home search (tied with a real estate agent)
- 84% of homebuyers used the internet to search for a home
- 82% of home buyers who searched the internet purchased a home through a real estate agent
- Buyers first learned about the home they bought through the internet 29% of the time (second only to through an agent)
Source: 2007 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers
Here are a few more reasons why online advertising is superior to traditional print advertising:
- Your return on investment is much easier to track and measure.
- You only pay for advertising that is successful in driving a potential customer to view your material.
- The cost of advertising online tends to be less. The internet has been an equalizer, allowing smaller companies who dedicate time and effort into their online marketing campaigns to compete with larger companies with more resources.
- Greater control over your advertising and budget.
- Ability to test and compare the effectiveness of different ads displayed.
- Easier to take a more targeted approach on finding potential customers
How do buyers and sellers find an agent to work with?
Statistics overwhelmingly point to search engines as the primary source for buyers to find homes and consequently find an agent. Consider the evidence:
Yahoo reports that 74% of people who accessed an agent website got there with the help of a search engine